Electromagnetic shielding is important for many electronic products which require electronic circuits and components to be free from electromagnetic interference. Such interference may emanate from sources outside the electronic product or from other circuits or components within the electronic product itself.
Many electromagnetic shields and mounts for these products use screw or similarly fastened shields immediately surrounding PWAs to provide the requisite protection. Screw-mounted shields, however, are relatively tedious to assemble, represent a relatively high part count, and due to the labor necessary for installation, contribute to a relatively high product cost. Electromagnetic shields are often an "add-on" item to the circuit design of an electronic product, rather than integrally designed in the mounting or packaging of the PWAs.
What is needed is a practical, economical mounting apparatus and method for PWA shielding. The development of a new facsimile machine provided an impetus to meet the need for providing mounting and electromagnetic shielding in a low-cost, straightforward manner. The need existed to use only a few simple, yet reliable, parts in the design. The need also existed to devise a method which would allow for easy assembly of the shielded mounting.